Improvement in electro-magnetic watchmen s registers



H. D. SHEPPARD.

Improvement in Electro-Magnetic Watchmans Register.

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PATENT OFFICE;

HORATIO D. SHEPPARD, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

IMPROVEMENT IN ELECTRO-MAGNETIC WATCHMENS REGISTERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 125,624, dated April 9,1872.

To whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, HORATIO D. SHEPPARD, 0f the city, county, and Stateof New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inElectro-Magnetic WVatchmens Registers, and that the following, taken inconnection with the drawing forming part of this specification, is sucha full, clear, and exact description thereof as will enable othersskilled in the art to make and use the same.

The object of this invention is to provide means for accuratelyregistering the faithfulness with which a watchman attends to hisduties, recording his visits to his various posts or stations and thetimes thereof; and is adapted for use at single stations, or in buildings, or factories containing many apartments requiring to be visited, orfor-use upon the street rounds of policemen and it consists in a novelarrangement of paper-feeding mechanism, whereby the record paper ismoved certain definite distances at determinate intervals, and in thenovel construction of a circuit closer for accomplishing this, and inthe combination with the above of certain mechanism for marking upon thepaper when brought into action; and it also consists in so graduating ordividing the record-paper by 1narks,both length and crosswise, intodivisions, that a mark in any division indicates both the time ofmarking and the place or station where the circuit was closed to makethe mark.

In the drawing, Figure 1 represents a front view of my entire apparatus,showing, however, only one station and recording-lever. Fig. 2 is a topview of a number of marking-levers with their marking-points over thepaper. Fig. 3 is a detached view of the circuit-closing device. Fig. 4is a view of the graduated paper.

A represents an ordinary clock, behind or upon the face or dial of whichare arranged two rings of copper wire, D E, insulated from each other,and connected by wires 1 2 to the battery N. These wires haveprojections a (0 arranged, at equal divisions or as desired, to comeslightly in contact with the minute-hand B of the clock, the contactbeing sufficient to close the circuit from the battery by wires 1 and 2through the magnet F. In the framing is mounted a solid cylinder, I, soas to freely turn on its journals or bearings. A convenient size forthis cylinder is one and a half inches in diameter and of same length.On one end of this cylinder is a ratchet-wheel, 0, in the teeth I) ofwhich a pawl or ratchet, H, takes. This ratchet is affixed to and movedby the armature-lever G of the electromagnet F, each pulsation throughthe magnet pulling the lever G and pawl H toward the magnet and turningthe cylinder forward one tooth. As in the drawing a pulsation takesplace every five minutes; but the frequency of these pulsations can bealtered, depending upon the distance apart of the projections a a up 011the rings 1) E. The armature-lever G is pulled away from the magnet uponthe breaking of the circuit by the spring h, its motion being limitedand regulated by the back-stop m. In front of the cylinder is stationeda reel, 3 on which is wound a ribbon or band of paper, the paper passingover the cylinder, and being held firmly to its surface by a roller, 2,forced down upon the paper by a small coil spring. For marking upon thepaper an electro-magnet, K, is attached to the framing, and has aswinging-armature lever, L, pivoted at d. This armature-lever ends in astylus, 0, arranged to be pressed upon the cylinder I, and the paperpassing thereover. A key, M, is placed at each station, the closing ofwhich completes a circuit from the battery N, via wires 3 and 4, throughthe electro-magnet K. hen the circuit is open the armature-lever L isdrawn away from the magnet by the spring f lifting the stylus 6 clear ofthe paper; but, upon the circuit being closed by the watchman pressingthe key M, the armature-lever is attracted and the stylus pressed uponthe paper, making a mark thereon. The marking portion of the stylus maybe a pen or pencil, or any other suitable device; or, by usingchemically'prepared paper and a circuit through the armature-lever andcylinder I, the marks may be made upon the paper by chemicaldecomposition or changes.

The clock and registering apparatus may be placed in the office of afactory, or of a superintcndent of police, or at any place desired, andthe paper can be inspected often or may be left for a long time as anunfailing record of the work performed.

Oircuit-closin g keys are provided at suitable stations, and should beboxed in or covered to prevent injury. Each key hasa connection to itsown lever and stylus and with the battery, these armature levers beingarranged side by side with their points over the paper and revolvingcylinder, as seen in Fig. 2.

Registering apparatus has been constructed wherein all stationsconnected with the same armature and marking-point, and in which eachstation must be visited seriatim in order to close the circuit to theregistering instru ment-t'. e.,the circuit from station 2 could not beclosed and a visit to that station recorded until No. 1 had been visitedand the key then manipulated. This plan is faulty, in that a watchman orpoliceman may be called away to a distant part of his beat necessarilyand hurriedly-say just after visiting station 1; afterward he mustreturn to station 2, passing, perhaps, several stations on his way,before he can again register his presence on his round.

By my apparatus he can commence again at the nearest station, theposition of the registering mark upon the paper, as hereinafterexplained, indicating the station, and also the time elapsed and thestations not registered in the interval.

In Fig. etis represented the paper I use. To

' wound and the battery placed in working order, as shown in thedrawing. Every five minutes the minute-hand of the clock closes acircuit through the magnet F, and the paper is moved forward onedivision or space. If, now, the key M be closed, a circuit isestablished through the magnet K, and a mark is madein the divisionunder the stylus. As shown, the paper is moved one-tenth of an inch ateach impulse through F, or one and twotenths inch per hour; thus thedistance apart of the marks or impressions upon the paperhours andfractions of hours down to twelfths. The locality of the mark laterallyindicates the .lever making it or the station to which the impressionbelongs, so that the time and station may .be' understood at a glanceand without calculation. 7

I am aware that watch or register clocks have been made in which theregistering-paper was affixed to a disk moving constantly and regularlywith the hands of a clock, a marking pencil being kept always in contacttherewith, the course of the pencil being changed so that the marks madewere in different directions for indicating the various stationsregistered; but my invention being different therefrom and using none ofthe devices therein claimed, I claim nothing thereof; but What I doclaim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-- y 1. An electricalcircuit arranged to be closed or opened by the hands of a clock,substantially as set forth.

2. In combination with the hands of a clock,

the disk or .wires having suitable projections, all arranged to act asan automatic circuitcloser at stated times, substantially as set forth.

3. In an electric register, the paper for registering moved a definitedistance at certain all other stations, and designed to register onlyfor its own station, substantially as set forth.

7. The combination of the clock-hand B, disks or wires D E,electro-magnets F and K, armatures G and L, pawl H, stylus e, andcylinder I, all arranged substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

HORATIO D. SHEPPARD.

Witnesses:

D. D. PARMELEE, NOAH TUGWELL.

